"A tribute to our beloved Bek, who tirelessly served us thousands of coconuts over the years near the Mysore shala both in Laxmipuram and in Gokulum. We will miss him dearly. These photos were taken the month before he passed away of a heart attack." --Govinda Kai

This project is humbly dedicated to our Guru, Sri K Pattabhi Jois, without whom, none of this would be possible. Thank you!

In this issue:

Practice "Practice" By Jeff and Harmony LichtyGo Green "Healing Waters in the Home" By Elissa ScottInterview "Saraswati Rangaswamy: Yoga and Women" By Lisa Laler and Bill BrundellPractice "Pop Yoga: When Joints Pop" By Russell CasePractice "Positively Ashtanga" By SilviaHealth "Relieve Aches, Pains, and Stiffness with Oil Baths" By Kimberly Flynn WilliamsFood "The Importance of Fall Cleansing" By Stacey PlaskeMysore Highlight "Where Did All the Kings Go?" By Philippa AsherSeva "Yoga in Rwanda" By Lara Lauchheimer

FEEDBACK

From Peter Jones, UKThank you for publishing the article and the You Tube links by Anne Nuotio. I found her words very inspirational, and her practice very lovely to watch.

From Oliver Pooler, PortugalI read the article by Annie Gurton about eating meat and I was quite shocked. When I took up Ashtanga the first thing I was told to do was give up meat eating and I have been strictly vegetarian for ten years. I don't understand how she can do yoga and eat meat. Apart from the ethical considerations, eating meat heats up the body too much and is not good for the joints, let alone the planet. I think she is wrong.

From Sandra Fernandes Cortes from GoaI read 'Free to be Green' by Elissa Scott in your last issue, and I wonder if she has any more down-to-earth advice that every one can follow to improve the planet ? We all want to do our bit, but we are not all in the position to make decisions about air condition and house heating.

Hi Annie,Just read your article about diet and your visit to mysore.After trying various forms of vegetarian diet, including raw foods, I discovered that I needed to eat right for my blood type, which is O+. There is a body of research on the subject which you may be interested in.All the best.Daniel

Dear Daniel,Thank you for your email, and for taking the trouble to write.

I have investigated the blood group / food link, but found that the foods recommended for my group (AB Rh+) are not particularly relevant.I need to eat cooked foods with occasional steak - raw foods are not good for me at all unless I eat them occasionally at lunch-time.It's a very interesting topic, though, and thanks for your feedback.Best regards, Annie

Dear Daniel,Thank you for your interesting reply.

I don't know - perhaps there is something in the blood type connection, but I think my group is recommended to eat raw foods and they certainly do not suit me (insomnia and flatulence and general feeling of not-quite-right are the result if I eat lots of raw and not enough cooked).

Thanks also for your comments about my therapy. Far be it from me to interfere with the work of other therapists, but if I was working with someone for 20 years and they still needed counselling, I would think whatever I was doing wasn't working ! I see that you say you have worked with a spectrum of treatments, but I wonder if you have tried Human Givens ? I'm not sure where you are located, but if you go to www.hgi.org you will find a list of Registered Therapists. There is also an explanation of Human Givens, and I recommend that you watch the video, and perhaps read the article called 'Imagine' (at the bottom right of the home page).

I wholly agree that a regular Ashtanga practice is terrific for mental as well as physical well-being. If you felt like it, you could perhaps interest the Editor of Living Mysore, Elise, in a feature about your experiences. You can email her at livingmysore@gmail.com and she is most open to all kinds of features which will interest other Ashtanga practitioners, and novices. She would probably want a piece from about 500 to 1K words.

With best regards,Annie

Hi Annie,

Thanks for your response. It was interesting to hear your experience with the blood type diet and that it doesn't work for you. No need to reply to this but I did want to share with you that at the time I was following it, the raw food diet was also not recommended as the right diet for my type "O". After several months of raw foods (no animal products) I was emaciated and suffering from malnutrition from not eating meat and other cooked foods. Realizing something was wrong I was lucky to find a nutritionist who guided me back to a healthy diet using the blood type diet as a map. I was trying to avoid non violence by not eating animal products but in doing so was slowly killing myself. Fifteen years later now my diet is balanced with a variety of animal protein sources, cooked and raw foods.

On another note, your therapy practice looks very interesting and seems to offer a good guide to a balanced diet for the mind and spirit. I have been in counseling (usually once a week) for over 20 years in a spectrum of psychological treatment modalities. This along with a daily ashtanga practice has enabled me to expanded my self knowledge and find a place of peace with more balance in daily life and with interaction with the world.